When it comes to Cincinnati-style chili, Gold Star Chili has a secret recipe with great flavor and history. In 1965, the four Daoud brothers fulfilled their dream of owning a successful business when they bought their first restaurant, Hamburger Heaven. It was there that they perfected their recipe for Cincinnati-style chili, and used the same flavorful spice blend to create Gold Star Chili. Today, Gold Star Chili continues to be a favorite spot to enjoy Cincinnati-style chili, with 82 locations in Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana as well as Gold Star Chili grocery products sold in Cincinnati area retail stores.

Samir Daoud is the Director of Franchise Development and Sales for Gold Star Chili. Among other responsibilities, Daoud is responsible for increasing retail sales in the Cincinnati area and managing inventory and order fulfillment. Gold Star Chili manufactures a number of grocery products for retail sales, such as canned and frozen chili. In an effort to expand retail sales and begin selling these items in larger warehouse club stores such as Sam’s Club, Daoud sought out an additional partner to outsource packaging jobs.

After a call with Ohio Valley Goodwill Industrial Services Division, Daoud decided to utilize their services to assemble large 15-ounce cans of Gold Star Chili for retail sale. The cans needed to be assembled into multi-packs, which often adds costs to the product, according to Daoud. “We were really looking for a way to keep our costs low while making the multi-packs,” said Daoud. “Goodwill made the process easy from start to finish and was able to keep our costs very low.”

The cans of Gold Star Chili were sent from the manufacturer to the warehouse, where they were sent to Goodwill Industries’ facilities in Cincinnati. Goodwill workers then broke down the cases and reassembled the product as multipacks. From there, the assembled product was sent back to Gold Star where it was distributed to warehouse club stores and sold to customers.

Daoud says the process with Goodwill Industrial services has been seamless. “Goodwill Industries filled a void we were desperately needing,” he said. “Before, we were running into roadblocks, but now we can sell our product at a cost that is really competitive.”

When asked if he would recommend Goodwill’s Industrial Services Division to other companies Daoud said, “Absolutely– without a doubt. They were transparent and easy to work with, and their quality was excellent.”